Reviews

The same plot points from previous seasons continue to be used: Joe sees Kate masturbating and saves her from a robbery. Joe gets to a state of unconsciousness by drinking too much and wakes up to a dead person.

However, I wasn't expecting or requiring major changes to the series. The creators have discovered a formula that interests viewers and makes them want to come back.

The inspiration from HBO was evident in this episode. It was more gory and graphic when Joe was shown dismembering Malcolm and some of the character's makeup in the party was Euphoriaesque.

Usually introducing this many characters at once confuses the viewer too much. In this whodunit plot, however, it works. At least for now. I want to see how we delve into each individual in the next episodes. I'm also a bit concerned how similar all of the rich kids are. Hopefully their individual personalities are shown.

The film is centered around Will whose wife Lisa goes missing while they stop at a gas station. Will needs to go on his own quest of finding her because he can't just stay still (shown time and time again by Butler's constant pacing and touching of his face).

When it comes to sound design, this film has one of the most horrific scenes that I have witnessed: Will is having a heated argument with Lisa's parents with all of them speaking on top of one another. At the same time the background noises consist of a dog barking and a clock ticking with a finale of a kettle starting to whistle. These sounds were used to add tension but it only made me irritated and confused (why is this clock so damn loud?! Who's dog is this?!)

I chuckled lightly every time Gerard Butler yelled "Lisa!!" and straight out laughed when he called for her in Lisa's parents house after her mother had already established she wasn't there.

Why did the parents need to suspect Will? In the next scene they are together, all of the accusations are forgotten. The interrogation scene also felt unnecessary. The husband is always the suspect but none of the scenes related to suspicions regarding Will's involvement had anything to add to the plot.

Russell Hornsby's character was necessary but his demeanor was off. In one scene he was a happy-go-lucky cop and in the next a serious detective.

The lighting was a bit off. It was either hospital white in the current time or weirdly yellow in the flashbacks.

The writing leaned towards too-convenient-to-be-true. It wasn't full on unbelievable but I wasn't fully onboard.

That CGI explosion... Low-budget at its best!

The film is listed as action but it doesn't have that many action scenes. We get one hands-on fight, a one-on-one shooting scene and an explosion. This makes sense though. The main character isn't a secret agent or ex-military guy, just a regular degular real estate guy. I would still much rather put it under the thriller category.

I was trying to figure out the thematic points of the film but couldn't come up with any. Its action was also lackluster and after you've seen it once, you're good. I could maybe put this on as background noise while doing something else.